Needle threaders



Oct. 31, 1961 w. w. LILLARD 3,006,518

NEEDLE THEEADERS Filed Nov. 24, 1958 INVENTOR. JY

United States Patent O 3,006,518 NEEDLE THREADERS William W. Lillard, 925 Palm Ave., Beaumont, Calif. Filed Nov. 24, 1958, Ser. No. 776,052 9 Claims. (Cl. 223-99) The present invention relates generally to needle threaders and more particularly to needle threaders which have bodies made from strips of thin flexible material softer than steel, these strips preferably being folded lengthwise one or more times.

In United States Patent No. 2,668,644, issued February 9, 1954, there is shown in FIGURE 3 of the drawings of that patent, a needle threader of the general kind to which this invention relates.

An object of the present invention is the provision of a needle threader which can be made entirely of nonmetallic material and manufactured at a low cost.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a needle threader with which a hand sewing needle may be threaded with two or more diierent threads at the same time and at one operation.

Still another important object of the invention is the provision of a needle threader structure which can also serve as a needle holder or rack device for keeping needles in positions to be easily grasped and removed from the device quickly, each needle being -threaded with a work piece of sewing thread prearranged in a cooperative work position on the threader structure.

ther objects and advantageous features will appear as the description proceeds.

The present application is a continuation-impart of my application, Ser. No. 485,456, led Feb. l, 1955, which is now abandoned.

Referring to the drawings which form -a part of the specication: FIGURE 1 is a side view, broken away in part, of a needle threader substantially the same in construction as the device of FIGURE 3 of the drawings of United States Patent No. 2,668,644. FIGURE 2 is a side view, broken away in part, of a needle threader similar to that shown in FIGURE l and which embodies certain features not illustrated in FIGURE 1. FIGURE 3 is a partial enlarged cross-section along the line 3 3 of FIG- URE 2. FIGURE 4 is an enlarged cross-section along the 1line 4 4 of FIGURE 2. FIGURE 5 is an enlarged cross-section along the line 5 5 of FIGURE 2. FIG- URE 6 is a partial enlarged side View of a needle threader embodying a main needle threader feature of my invention and having a body element constructed for serving as a holder or rack for several needles which can be threaded one at a time as they are removed from the rack. This View may also be considered as an operational View for illustrating how a needle may be threaded with two or more different kinds of thread work pieces as the needle is removed from the threader structure of FIGURE 6. FIGURE 7 is an enlarged cross-section along the line 7 7 of FIGURE 6. FIGURE 8 is a partial side view of a needle threader which embodies a main body feature of my invention and also includes certain features not found in the views described hereinbefore. FIGURE 9 is an enlarged rear end view, broken away in part, of the threader structure of FIGURE 8. FIGURES 10 and ll are partial top and end views of a needle threader for needles lwith short eyes.

In FIGURE 1 is illustrated one form my invention may take. A threader body 30 may be made from a single strip of thin, flexible, resilient matenial such as that known to the trade as Celluloid folded thrice lengthwise to produce a W-shaped cross-section approximately except that the outside strip elements 31 and 32 may have arcuate cross-sectional yforms as illustrated in FIG- 43,006,518 Patented Oct. 31, 1961 ICC URE l. This arcuate form tends to increase the resistance of the body 38 to4 sidewise bending but will flatten out readily when passing through the eye of a needle.

In some cases ias when the needle threader body 30 is to be used with a needle having a short eye, the two endsof a short loop 33 of thread extra small in diameter and made of some unusually strong material] such as natural silk or remie o-r of artiiicial silk-like fibers known to the trade as nylon may be cemented strongly to the inside faces of the outside strip elements 31 and 32 near their trailing ends. In use with the pointed end of the needle threader up, one end portion of a length of sewing thread 34 is put through the loop 33 and its weight will cause the end portion 34 to hang downward. The body 30 is then passed through the eye of the needle and pulled forwardly until the loop 33 and thread 34 pass through the eye and are disengaged one from the other, when a knot 35 in the thread 34 comes up against a rim portion 36 of the needle around the eye.

In the threader illustrated in FIGURE 2, a body 40 may be made from a single strip of thin ilexible, resilient material softer than iron folded once lengthwise along the longitudinal center line of the strip to have normally a V-shaped cross-section (shown in dotted lines in FIG- URE 4) at nearly all points along the length of the strip. A short, stiffened, forward end portion 41 of the threader body may be provided by cementling short forward end sections of two body side wall elements 42 and 43 together, one to the other, by a cement (not shown) which becomes somewhat stiff when it hardens but does not materially increase the thickness of the forward end of the body 40. In some cases it may be desirable to insert a thin, suitable stiifener element 44 between the side wall 'sections 42 and 43 before they are cemented together. The end portion 41 may be pointed to facilitate inserting it in the eye of a needle (not shown), and a number of holes 45 may be made through the sections 42 and 43 and the stiener element 44. These holes may be lled with any kind of suitable plastic material (not shown) which will harden and help hold the element 44 in position when it is of some material that can not be satisfactorily cemented to the side wall elements 42 and 43.

The length of the ycemented and stilfened end portion should be enough to permit it to be easily lgrasped between the users thumb and lingers of one hand.

The inner faces of the diverging wall elements 42 and 43 may be roughened in any suitable well known way to have many closely spaced minute teeth-like pointed elements 47 for a purpose presently to appear. In a short, rear end section or area 50 which is narrower than the width of the body 40, the side wall elements 42 and 43 may be cemented together, one to the other and to two inner end portions 51 of a workpiece pulling loop 52 of small extra strong thread such as that known as nylon, the ends of the loop being thus disposed out of disruptive engagement with rim portions (not illustrated) of a needle eye as the threader of FIGURE 2 is used. When a needle is to be threaded with only one workpiece of thread, the latter may lbe put through the loop 52 and manipulated as described and explained hereinbefore with regard to the use o-f the structure of FIGURE 1. When it is desired -for reasons set forth hereinafter to 4thread a needle (not shown) with two different workpieces of sewing thread by using the threader of FIGURE 2, one workpiece can be put through the loop 52 and another workpiece T may be Iinserted between the side wall elements 42 and 43 below (as viewed in FIGURE 2) the section 50 and forwardly therefrom a suitable distance so that when the `side wall elements are pressed together as indicated in FIGURE 4, the teeth-like elements 47 willl serve to grip the last mentioned workpiece T and cause it to be pulled through the eye of the needle with the threader body 40. It may then be easily disen- ,ga-ged from ythe Vthreader by pulling the latter ahead, away from the needle.

Should a loop 52 become ruptured or worn out, the working life of the threader of which the loop was an element may be-continued in this way. With a knife or shears, the body 40 may be severed just forward of the area 50. The resilience of side wall elements 42 and 43 will cause them to spring apart. The forward end portion of a length of workpiece T may be placed be placed between the diverging side wall elements 42 and 43 and then these elements may be pressed tightly together and make the teeth-like elements 47 effective for pulling the workpiece along toward the eye of the needle (not shown in FIGURE 2) to be threaded as the forward end of the Abody 40 is inserted into the eye as shown in FIGURE l. The side wall or rim elements of the needle at each side of the eye are effective to keep the teeth-like elements 47 in `operative pulling engagement with the workpiece T until the body is through the eye and the workpiece forward portion is through too. Then as the resilience of the side wall elements diverge these elements, the workpiece is automatically released, and the needle is fully threaded. While a threader body 40 may be made up of -two separate side wall strip elements cemented together along one side edge, a satisfactory divergent action of such side wall elements, one to the other, would be diicult or impossible to secure and maintain.

In FIGURES 6 and 7 is illustrated how a needle threader 60 according to my invention, may also be made to serve advantageously as a holder or rack for several needles N each of which it may be wished to use with a workpiece of sewing thread different from that to be used in any o-f the other needles N on the rack. The construction of the threader 60 is basically, i.e. fundamentally, the same as the FIGURE 1 and FIGURE 2 forms and comprises a body made with two side wall elements 61 and 62 in the form of narrow strips integrally joined along one side edge and having at least one loop of workpiece pulling, small thread fastened to the bodys trailing end by cementing the forward ends of the loop to inner surfaces of the two side walls. The body 60 may have V'-shaped cross sectional form throughout most of its length, the side wall elements 61 and 62 being joined at the upper edge of the body and spread or flared away from each other at their bottom edges.

Short, forwardly disposed end portions of the side wall elements 61 and 62 -are cemented together, pointed and provided with a hole 64 by means of which the body may be fastened on a nail (not shown) or the like. To make the body 60 eective for serving as a rack for carrying several needles spaced apart suitable distances to be conveniently grasped by fingers of a user, several sets of notches, three notches to one set, are made in the body as described hereinafter. One notch of each set is designated 65, and associated notches in each set are designated 68. All three notches of one set are disposed approxim-ately in a plane at Va right angle to the body 60. The notches 65 are made in the upper edge of the body 60 and the notches 68 are made in the lower edges of the side wall elements 61 Iand 62. All of the notches of each set are preferably made with forward side elements at approximately right angles to the longitudinal direction of the body 60. The rearwardly disposed sides of the notches are materially inclined toward the rear or trailingkend of the body. Such inclination may be forty-five degrees or less, in a smaller degree. To make use of the rack feature of my invention, the needles N are threaded over the pointed forward end of the body 60 and moved therealong, each needle to be seated or placed in one of the sets of notches where it will be retained positively against accidental displacement. However because of the rearwardly inclined sides of the notches, each needle nearest the rear end of the body may be readily moved toward the rear end and off in a way to be presently disclosed. It should be noted that the resilience of material in the sidewall elements 61 and 62 and their outwardly ared forms holds the lower notches 68 in positive retaining engagement with the associated needles. It is obviously necessary that the lengths of the eyes of the needles N be more than the width of the body 60, and preferably the lengths of the eyes (indicated in FIGURE 6) are materially more.

For carrying out that feature of myV invention which is to thread a needle as it is removed from a rack-carrying body 60, the two ends of a loop 70 of strong, small thread may be placed between the side wall elements of a rear, i.e. trailing end portion 71 of the body 601 and these elements pressed tightly together around the ends of the thread and then cemented one to the other wall element. Then if :a length of a w-orkpiece 73 be inserted partly through the loop 70 and the needle N to be threaded is moved from its racked position over the loop, the workpiece will be threaded in the same manner as disclosed hereinbefore in connection with the threader of FIGURE l.

For carrying out that important feature of my invention which is to thread a needle N with two dilferent kinds of work pieces, as for example, one colored red and one colored blue, and do that kind of needle threading at the same operation as when the needle is removed from the threader body 60, the following means may be provided. Two ends of a loop 7S longer than the loop 70 of small strong thread may be cemented between the side wall elements 61 and 62 a short distance above the ends of the loop 76 and at the same time the ends of loop 70 are cemented. If a short portion of red workpiece 73 in color and a short portion of a blue workpiece 77 be passed through the loop 70 -and 75, respectively, and a rearmost needle, Idesignated NR, on the racked body 6G be moved rearwardly beyond the rear end of loop 75, the needle NR will be threaded with two diferent workpieces in what is in effect one final operation.

It can be readily seen that by a construction similar to that shown in FIGURE 6, a needle can be threaded with workpieces of three different colors, or kinds. In such cases, the rearmost loop should be the longest and may 'De made of larger or stronger thread Vthan the other loops. Such a threader device, preferably should be made for use with needles having extra long eyes.

It is contemplated that most persons using needles threaded with two or more colors will do so for the ornamental eect obtainable in a marked degree in Socalled fancy needle work when the thread work-pieces are made into a polychrome cord-like work piece by twisting the threads to a desired extent by simply rotatingi or turning the needle around the long axis thereof between the users thumb and iingers. This twisting may be done as the sewing proceeds and the engagement of the cloth about the twisted threads ordinarily prevents them becoming untwisted to any considerable extent. There are some utilitarian advantages also obtainable by having a work piece made up of a number of certain kinds of threads twisted together. For example a good composite darning thread made up of a relatively large in diameter, loosely woven, soft woolen thread not very strong in abrasive or tensile strain resistance may often be obtained by twisting it with one or more strong, small silk threads for darning socks, and other garments. Such a composite thread will otften be more durable than a woolen thread alone and will close up a small opening in a garment quicker than can ybe done with silk threads alone, of the usual, small in diameter kind.

It can be readily seen that with a needle threader of the kind shown in FIGURE 8, a needle may be threaded at one operation with three workpieces. One work piece would be put through the eye of the needle (not shown) with each of the loo-ps and one with the trough formation between the side wall elements. 'Ihe FIGURE 8 threader has a body 80 similar to the threader structure of FIG- URE 1 made by folding lengthwise a strip of thin, ilexible, resilient material as indicated in FIGURE 9 to have four strip elements described further hereinafter, and designated 81, 82, 83 and 84. The two strip elements 83 and 84 are at the outside edges of the body 80 before it is folded and are turned inwardly (as viewed in FIG- URE 9) to be disposed over the inner strip elements 81 and 82..

Two thread pulling loops (of unequal lengths) 85 and 86 are made of small strong thread and have a forwardly disposed end of each loop cemented to inside areas of the strip element 81. The other ends of the two loops are preferably cemented to inside areas of the strip element 82 positioned nearer the leading end of the threader than the loop ends cemented to the strip element 81. By this construction, the first named loop ends can not come directly opposite the second named loop ends and thus unnecessarily increase the thickness of the threader body at one point.

Lengthwise areas of the strip elements 83 and 84 near the fold line between the strip elements 81 and 82 may have a thin coating of a soft gum-like substance G that will increase the frictional pull on a workpiece W placed in the trough-like formation of the body 80 to be moved ahead with it through the eye of a needle (not shown) when a users fingers press the side wall elements 81 and 82 of the trough-like form together as illustrated in FIG- URE 4 and move the threader forwardly to have a pointed end element 89 enter the eye. After the body 80 is through the eye partly, the rim or side wall elements of the needle around the eye will keep the gum coated areas in operative thread pulling relation with the workpiece W. The resilience of the material in the strip elements 81, 82, 83, and 84 is effective to release the workpiece W from the lgum coated areas when the threader is entirely through the needle as described in connection with the structure of FIGURE 1.

In FIGURES and ll is illustrated, partly diagrammatically, an embodiment of my invention which is adapted for use in threading needles of sewing machines. A narrow, thin, flexible, resilient body member 90 may be made by folding a strip of suitable material lengthwise from its forward end to its trailing end so that at no point during the passage of the vbody 90 through a needle SN will the width of the body be equal to the length of the usual eye SNE of the needle. At the forward end of the body, a short section 90E of two side wall elements 91 and 92 are pointed and cemented together to be thin enough to be easily inserted in the eye SNE. At the rear of the section 90E, the body 90 is split for a short distance along the fold line and the side wall elements 91 and 92 are spread apart to form an opening or eye-like element 93. At the rear of the eye 93, the side wall elements 91 and 92 remain integrally joined and disposed in a flared relation to forni a V-shaped trough-like element 94 with the open side up.

At the rear end of the trough 94, the body is split again and the two rearmost parts of the body are spread apart to form tail-like elements 95. Two ends of a loop 96 of small strong thread are cemented to areas on the two tail parts 95 which will be disposed between the two tails when they are pressed together in being passed through the eye SNE as the threading operation is being carried out in a way presently to appear, and this arrangement safeguards the loop ends from being torn away from the tails.

One way of using the threader of FIGURE 10 is to put an end portion of a work piece T through the loop 96 and pull the work piece through the eye SNE as described hereinbefore in connection with the structure of FIGURE l. It will be noted however that the work piece portion T to go through the eye SNE is ordinarily only a short part of a spool of thread with no knots in it.

Therefore the workpiece T changing the loop 96 is shown diagrammatically and in short length.

Another way of using the structure of FIGURE 10 is to pass the end 96E through the eye SNE and leave it there temporarily while putting the forward end portion of a workpiece W downwardly through the eye 93 and laying a short stretch of the workpiece that follows into the trough 94 and between the tail elements 95. The trough necessarily being quite small even in its flared out form, the tails help in placing the workpiece in the trough and in keeping it there until the side wall elements 91 and 92 are pressed together by the users ngers preparatory to pulling the body and thread work piece through the eye SNE with the other hand of the user. Minute pointed elements 99 on the side wall elements next to the workpiece help to pull the latter along as the body is advanced. In some cases -as where there is an extra thick workpiece being used, it may be advantageous to snip off with scissors the depending forward end portion of the workpiece ush with the bottom of the body 90, i.e. the lowermost edge of the body, below the trough.

The form of threader shown in FIGURE l() may sometimes be used for threading hand sewing needles with extra small eyes since only one thickness of a thread would need be passed through the small eye of each needle in threading it. It is to be understood that the thickness of the side wall elements may be much smaller than the diameter of a usual work piece of sewing thread.

Certain of the advantages of the invention may be perceived from a careful reading of the foregoing description. Other advantages arise from the provision of designs of needle threaders with relative large loops of workpiece pulling thread that can have easily and quickly, workpieces put through them. Other advantages arise from the provision of threading devices which can be made in large sizes with long, thick but iiexible bodies with which thread or cord may be passed through curved passages of various kinds.

Another advantage resides in the usual result that follows when the ends of a loop of small, work-piece pulling thread are fastened to the body by usual cementing operations, i.e. when a thin coating of cement is spread on the surface of the body and the end portions of the loop are pressed firmly against the body until the cement has dried. This well known attachment operation leaves the juncture of the loop end portions and the body flexible and with a minimum of increase in thickness.

Having described my invention, I claim:

l. The combination with a metal sewing needle having an eye longer than its width, of a needle threader body member of thin flexible, resilient cellulose material, said body being made from a strip of said material folded at least once lengthwise to provide a plurality of strip elements narrower than the length of said eye, each of said strip elements having a diverging relation to the adjoining strip elements for stiiening said body member, said body material in said strips being sufficiently flexible and resilient that said strip elements may be readily collapsed toward each other suiciently to be passed through said eye as said body member is advanced operatively through said needle, the forward end portions of said strip elements being cemented together along a short section of their lengths, and a loop of workpiece-pulling soft, strong thread operatively attached to said body member for trailing therebehind, the forward ends of said loop threads being cemented to areas on the inner surfaces of said strip elements so as to safeguard said loop thread ends against being subjected to disruptive, detaching action by the metal about said needle eye.

2. The structure described in claim 1 modified by the addition of at least one loop of soft, strong workpiecepulling thread having its ends fastened to areas of inner surfaces of said strips, said additional loop being longer than said first named loop.

3. A threader adapted to be passed through the eyes of Y a plurality of needles, said threader including a body of thin, flexible, resilient, cellulose material, a short loop of soft strong thread, the closed end of said loop'extending rearwardly from thev trailing end of said body for receiving a work piece of sewing thread, and means for securing the extremities of said loop to said body so as to safeguard said extremities from disruptive contact with the needles as threading operations are performed, said means including at least one lengthwise fold formation in said body adjacent its trailing end and providing at least two strip elements of said body integrally joinedin a deverging relation, one to the other, for a portion of'their lengths adjacent their trailing ends, an attachment area on each of said strip elements for engagement with one of said loop extremities, each of said attachment areas being positioned on an inwardly disposed surface of the associated strip element adjacent its trailing end, and a thin, flexible cementitious material on each of said attachment areas for fastening said loop extremities to said body at places inaccessible to said needles as threading operations are performed, the flexibility and resilience of the material in said body being suicient that said areas are moved inwardly to better inaccessible positions as the threader is passed through a needle.

4. A needle threader for a plurality of needles having eyes much less in width than in length, said threader having a body made from a thin strip of flexible, resilient cellulose material folded lengthwise at least once and providing at least two strip elements, rearwardly disposed lengthwise portions of said strip elements having a diverging, transverse relation, each to the integrally joined adjacent strip element for facilitating manually placing the forward end of a workpiece of thread in said body, said diverging strip portions being manually pressible together, one against the other, for retaining said work piece in said body as it is moved initially up to and partly through the eye of a needle and two oppositely'positioned areas, one on each interiorly positioned surface of each of said strips adjacent its trailing end, said areas having friction-increasing means between which the forward end of said workpiece is squeezed and concomitantly gripped while it is being pulled forwardly through said needle.

5. The structure described in claim 3 modified by said body including notch devices in at least one side edge spaced therealong over a portion of its length, said notch devices being in spaced relation, one to another, for retaining a plurality of needles on said threader body in convenient positions for said needles to be removed, one at a time, rearwardly past said loop during a threading operation wherein each needle may be threaded simultaneously with its removal from said body.

6. The combination with a metal sewing needle having an eye longer than its width, of a needle threader body member of a thin flexible, resilient, non-metallic material softer than the metal in said needle, said body being made from a strip of said material folded at least once lengthwise to provide a plurality of strip elements narrower than the length of said eye, each of said strips having a diverging relation to the adjoining strip elements for stiifening said body member, the flexibility and resilience of said body material being effective to permit said strip elements to be collapsed toward each other sufficiently to be passed through said eye as said body member is advanced operatively through said needle, the forward end portions of said strip elements being cemented together along a short section of their lengths, and a loop of thread pulling soft, strong thread operatively attached to said body member for trailing therebehind, the forward ends of said loop each being cemented to areas on the inner surfaces of said strip elements so as to safeguard said loop ends against being subjected to a disruptive, detaching action by the metal about said needle eye.

7. A needle threader having a body -made from a thin, Y

ilexible strip of resilient material softer than steel folded lengthwise at least once and providing at least two strip elements, short forward end portions of said strip elements being pointed and cemented compactly together, the remaining lengthwise portions of said strip elements having a transverse, diverging relation, each to the integrally joined adjacent strip element for facilitating manually placing the forward end of a thread workpiece in said body, said diverging strip portions being manually pressible one against another for retaining said workpiece in said body as it is moved initially up to and partly through the eye of a needle, said flaring strip portions being kept in thread pulling engagement with said work piece by the needle portions around said eye as said body advances.

8. A threader for a metallic sewing needle having a thread-receiving eye materially longer than it is wide, said threader including a body of strip material softer than the metal in said needle, said body being adapted to be passed through said eye in close proximity to the side wall elements of said eye, a short loop of small strong bers softer than the metal in said needle, the closed end of said loop extending rearwardly from the trailing end of said body for receiving a workpiece of sewing thread, and means adapted for facilitating the securing the eX- tremities of said loop to said body so as to safeguard said extremities from disruptive contact with the side wall elements of said eye and consequent disengagement from said body as said loop is passed through said eye to pull said workpiece of sewing thread with it, said'means including a lengthwise fold formation in said body adjacent its trailing end and providing inner loop attachment surfaces in said body, and thin cementitious attachments of the soft end portions of said loop to areas of said inner surfaces, said attachments being inaccessible to said needle.

9. The structure described in claim 6 modified by the addition of at least one additional loop of soft thread fastened to areas of inner surfaces of said strips, said additional loop being longer and made of thicker thread than that in said first named loop.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 68,858 Eaton Sept. 17, 1867 2,411,118 Schuster Nov. 12, 1946 2,448,432 Huning Aug. 31, 1948 2,567,408 Soderberg Sept. 11, 1951 2,668,644 Lillard et al. Feb. 9, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 429,302 Great Britain May 28, 1935 

